In 1986, then President Ronald Reagan nominated a member of the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit to fill the Supreme Court seat of Justice William Rehnquist. The nominee was 50-year-old Antonin Scalia, who was known as a strong conservative. He was also said to be an originalist and textualist, meaning that he strongly adhered to the US Constitution and the meaning intended by the Framers who wrote our founding document.

Scalia served on the high court for nearly thirty years. During that time, he was considered to be the champion of conservative jurisprudence. He fought for the America our Founding Fathers established. He didn’t try to make it into anything different like so many liberal judges are trying to do these days.

When Scalia died suddenly, it was a shock to the conservative half of America. He was the counterbalance of the ultra-liberal rulings of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who many had hoped would leave the high court long before Scalia.

After placing two more ultra-liberals on the Supreme Court, Barack Obama was ready to do so again. However, knowing that he would never get the Republican controlled Senate to confirm another ultra-liberal, he tried to nominate someone he felt was more of a moderate – Judge Merrick Garland of the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. As we all know, the GOP Senate refused to hold confirmation hearings on Garland or any nominee until after the election.

Now, the responsibility of replacing Scalia on the high bench has fallen on President Donald Trump who appointed 49-year-old Judge Neil Gorsuch. In 2006, then President George W. Bush appointed Gorsuch to the US Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit, located in Denver, Colorado.

“Our analysis suggests that if confirmed, Gorsuch might be the most conservative justice on the Supreme Court.”

A Gorsuch confirmation could also have an impact on the medical industry. According to the Star Tribune:

“But one of the most strongly expressed opinions Gorsuch would bring to the nation’s highest judicial body is a belief that federal law protects medical device makers from lawsuits filed by patients injured by their products.”

“As an appeals court judge in the U.S. 10th Circuit, Gorsuch wrote an important 2015 opinion that denied a woman the right to sue Medtronic for injuries she said were caused by the company’s improper off-label promotion of its Infuse bone graft…”

“In the Caplinger opinion, Gorsuch asserted: ‘Nothing depends on whether the plaintiff seeks to use state law to impose requirements for off-label uses or on-label uses. Rather, by its terms, the statute pre-empts any effort to use state law to impose a new requirement on a federally approved medical device’.”

“Gorsuch added that ‘a state’s judgment that a device is unsafe for a particular off-label use could require design changes that adversely affect the device’s safety for on-label uses’.”

“Having a Supreme Court justice who takes such an approach is good news for the medical device industry, which employs tens of thousands of workers in Minnesota and is home to one of the country’s most robust medical technology sectors, said John Dornik, an attorney at the Minneapolis firm of Siegel Brill, who also teaches product liability at the University of Minnesota.”

Some may look on this as a negative from the patient point of view, but others look on it as a positive for the medical device industry and a boon for jobs and medical research. One thing is for sure, if confirmed Neil Gorsuch could and probably will have an impact on the medical industry for years to come.

For reasons, completely unknown, the Democrats decided to tap former Kentucky Governor Steve Beshear to deliver the liberal party’s rebuttal to Trump’s address to Congress. With many prominent Democrats in Washington DC, it was more than a surprise to learn that Beshear was chosen for the sacred honor of ripping the President’s address to shreds. Perhaps one reason is the Beshear is a devout Obamanite disciple and did everything his master asked him to do.

Ask yourself why would the Democrats choose someone who just lost his political office to a Republican political novice who sounds a lot like Donald Trump? Republican Matt Bevin is a businessman who, like Trump, opposed many of the bureaucratic dictates of the Obama administration and defeated Democrat Jack Conway by a 511,374 to 426,620 vote margin.

Steve Beshear was elected governor of Kentucky in 2007. He had a big political following in the good ole boy state since he served in the state House of Representatives, state Attorney General and Lieutenant Governor. Once Barack Obama was elected, Beshear quickly made it known that he supported Obama’s socialist agenda 150%.

He couldn’t wait to implement Obamacare in Kentucky. When he was selected to be the mouthpiece for the Democratic slander of President Trump, Beshear was touted as being a champion of Obamacare in his state. All the media outlets bragged about how Beshear’s implementation of Obamacare lowered the state’s uninsured rate from 20% to 7.5%.

What they didn’t report is how much that was costing Kentucky taxpayers and how some people in Kentucky still could not afford the outrageous premiums associated with Obamacare.

After only a month in office, Bevin announced that he had put a plan in motion to transition from a state healthcare exchange program to using the federal exchange. In his statement, he stated that it makes no sense to pay twice for the same thing, meaning that those of us in Kentucky are paying taxes to support the federal exchange program and we pay state taxes to support the state exchange program. That’s an example of the failed economic plans of the Democrat Party.

Perhaps another reason so many people in Kentucky were able to get healthcare coverage under Obamacare is that they were able to qualify for the federal subsidy. We live in Kentucky and know of a number of residents who were able to purchase healthcare coverage only because they qualified for a federal subsidy. Every one of them said that without the federal subsidy, they would not be able to afford coverage because the costs were so high.

How high are the costs of Obamacare in Kentucky? My wife has a heart valve issue that is controlled with medication. I have Type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure and am overweight. When we priced an Obamacare policy in the Blue Grass State, we were shocked at the high price. The cheapest plan we could find was a bronze tier plan that had a $4,000 deductible and once that was met, would only pay 60% of covered expenses, which really equates to paying less than 50% of medical costs. How much did this great healthcare policy cost? $816 a month or nearly $10,000 a year. That’s like making a second mortgage payment each month for a plan that would still cost us thousands of dollars out of pocket.

“Even more troubling is that you and your Republican allies in Congress seem determined to rip affordable health insurance away from millions of Americans who most need it.

“So far, every Republican idea to ‘replace’ the Affordable Care Act would reduce the number of Americans covered, despite promises to the contrary.”

Oh really? Didn’t Obama promise that everyone in America would be covered under the Affordable Care Act? Didn’t Obama promise that the Affordable Care Act would lower the costs of healthcare insurance and increase the benefits, services and options everyone would have.

Millions of Americans lost their healthcare insurance under Obama. Millions saw their premiums skyrocket while the benefits, services and options drastically decreased. Thousands of doctors left the medical profession, numerous medical facilities and hospitals stopped taking Medicaid and other Obamacare patients because they were not getting paid as promised and many insurance companies have dropped policies and withdrawn from Obamacare.

And Beshear has the gall to criticize President Trump and Republicans for wanting to fix what they failed to deliver in the first place? This whole mess was created by liberal Democrats, not Republicans, so why are Republicans being vilified for wanting to fix or replace the Democrat’s disastrous program.

During his presidential campaign, Donald Trump promised to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare. He and others have pointed out the many problems associated with Obamacare.

Millions of Americans have seen their premiums skyrocket and their coverage decrease meaning they are paying more for less. A growing number of doctors left their private practices, either joining a larger medical group or finding a whole new profession because under Obamacare, they earn less and have more rules and restrictions and paperwork. A number of hospitals have stopped accepting patients on Obama’s expanded Medicaid because they are not getting reimbursed for services as promised and are losing too much money. Obamacare established a number of co-ops to help provide coverage for lower income people, however, the majority of the co-ops have failed and closed. A number of the major healthcare insurance companies have dropped many of their Obamacare policies and others have or are planning to completely withdraw from providing any Obamacare policies. Millions of Americans have had their healthcare policies cancelled on them.

On a more positive note, a number of lower income individuals were able to purchase healthcare coverage with the help of the federal subsidies. Additionally, many people with pre-existing conditions were also able to obtain healthcare coverage for the first time in years.

However, even though Obamacare promised that pre-existing medical conditions would be covered, it never promised that coverage would be affordable. My wife has a minor heart condition that is treated with medication. I am overweight and have Type 2 diabetes and high blood pressure. When we shopped for healthcare, the cheapest policy we found was a bronze-tier plan that had a $4,000 deductible and then would only pay 60% of covered items and we all know how ‘covered items’ works. For this wonderful healthcare insurance policy, it would have cost us $816 a month. Like most Americans, there was no way we could afford to pay that much a month for so little coverage. It was cheaper to pay the tax penalty for the first couple of years. Thankfully, we both have Medicare now which although not great, is better than nothing.

In the wake of the election, President Donald Trump has vowed to keep his promise on Obamacare and has tasked Congress to come up with a workable replacement.

In the meantime, many Americans have been protesting and telling their politicians in Washington DC and the liberal media that they fear they will lose their current healthcare coverage if Obamacare is repealed. Trump has tried to reassure the worried public by saying that everyone will be covered, but saying and doing are two different things.

Many liberal critics have been saying that the Republicans have no plan to replace Obamacare with and others are saying that they have no idea how to proceed. No matter what the Republicans do or how good of a replacement they come up with, liberals will still pick and choose on what aspects to complain about. Not everyone will be satisfied and someone will always be unhappy and complain.

A recent report indicates that Washington Republicans are working on a draft for a healthcare replacement of Obamacare. Like most drafts, it is subject to change, so people should not start getting too worked up or bent out of shape over the preliminary reports such as those currently surfacing.

“The Feb. 10 document follows the broad policy outline released by Republicans last week just before they went home for a Congressional recess. It proposes cuts to federal payments to states that have expanded Medicaid and offers tax credits for people to buy health insurance…”

“Under the plan, states that expanded eligibility for Medicaid would see their supplemental federal funding rolled back. The program would also be converted from a federal-state program that pays for all the health care beneficiaries get, to one where Washington sends a fixed amount of money to each state for each Medicaid enrollee.”

“To help people who don’t get insurance through their employer buy coverage, the bill offers age-based tax credits that start at $2,000 for individuals under age 30. It would rise to $4,000 for those over 60. Those credits are unlikely to cover the full cost of a plan that pays for routine health care, but could potentially pay for insurance that protects against a catastrophic health event.”

The problem I see with offering a tax credit is that it only applies when you file your taxes, not when you have to pay out that monthly premium while trying to pay your mortgage/rent, keep the utilities on and food on the table.

Larry Levitt, Senior Vice President at the Kaiser Family Foundation commented about the early draft:

“This would mean fewer people could afford health insurance and that the health insurance would likely cover less.”

Like I said, this is an early draft and subject to a lot of change. I don’t envy those men and women tasked to find a workable placement, but be assured, Republicans are working on a plan and hopefully, it will be better than Obamacare.

In this health news update, we review several new technologies currently disrupting the field of healthcare to improve overall health and anti-aging. Exponential change in healthcare is here and it isn’t leaving. Over the next 5-10 years we will see dramatic changes in how we receive healthcare, diagnose disease improve anti-aging technology and treat global health crises. Here are 5 technologies that are leading the charge in 2017.

Artificial Intelligence And The Future Of Health:Health News about AI: Artificial Intelligence (AI) is defined as the science and engineering of creating intelligent computer systems that are able to perform tasks without receiving instructions directly from humans. It is on the brink of disrupting many industries including healthcare. AI systems have the potential to provide physicians and researchers with clinically relevant, real-time, quality information sourced from data stored in electronic health records (EHRs) for immediate needs. With the introduction of AI to healthcare, we can expect better patient outcomes, more efficient doctor visits, reduction of treatment costs and an end to unnecessary hospital procedures.

Health News About 3D Printing TechnologyAccording to 3dprint.com, one of the faster growing markets to adopt 3D printing technology is the healthcare industry, which has been rapidly developing new medical applications at an astounding rate. What once was just a small blip on the 3D printing radar has grown into its own industry within an industry, and looks to continue to expand exponentially over the next four years.

DronesWhen you think of health news, you wouldn’t expect to find information about drones. In fact, your first thought might be about how you will receive your next Amazon delivery, dropped on your doorstep in a matter of hours. But in developing countries facing urgent and deadly healthcare challenges, drones save lives. Using drones to deliver life saving medical supplies is being tested around the globe and the potential for growth is huge.

Mini DNA SequencerOne of the most interesting bits of health news we discovered while researching this article concerns the Mini DNA Sequencer. Thanks to British company, Oxford Nanopore Technologies, there is now a USB powered genome sequencer that is smaller than most smart phones. What does that mean? We can now monitor the health and diagnose diseases for astronauts in space. We can use the device to learn about mobile DNA sequencing. It has the potential to be part of every aid worker’s field kit as well as medical supplies delivered to communities for improved health education and self-monitoring.

Nanotechnology Health NewsAccording to Singularityhub.com, in the last decade, nanotechnology has advanced and is finding practical applications. Some teams are developing nanoscale patterns on medical implants that can stimulate bone cell growth and positive gene expression. Others are working to make guided nanoparticles that detect (and even destroy) cancer cells. The dream of nanomachines traveling your body and repairing it on the cellular level is a little closer thanks to the development of nanoengines and nanorockets.

Is 100 years old about to be the new 60? The folks at Peter Diamandis’ Human Longevity, Inc. think so. They’ve cited these top five stories from 2016 on longevity research that suggest that the debate on a natural life span limit is far from over.

500-Year-Old Shark Discovered: A Greenland shark that could have been over 500 years old was discovered this year, making the species the longest-lived vertebrate in the world.photo source

Genetically Reversing Aging: With an experiment that replicated stem cell-like conditions, Salk Institute researchers made human skin cells in a dish look and behave young again, and mice with premature aging disease were rejuvenated with a 30% increase in lifespan. The Salk Institute expects to see this work in human trials in less than 10 years.

25% Life Extension Based on Removal of Senescent Cells: Published in the medical journal Nature, cell biologists Darren Baker and Jan van Deursen have found that systematically removing a category of living, stagnant cells can extend the life of mice by 25 percent.Photo Source

Funding for Anti-Aging Startups: Jeff Bezos and the Mayo Clinic-backed Anti-Aging Startup Unity Biotechnology with $116 million. The company will focus on medicines to slow the effects of age-related diseases by removing senescent cells (as mentioned in the article above).Photo Source

Young Blood Experiments Show Promising Results for Longevity: Sakura Minami and her colleagues at Alkahest, a company specializing in blood-derived therapies for neurodegenerative diseases, have found that simply injecting older mice with the plasma of young humans twice a week improved the mice’s cognitive functions as well as their physical performance. This practice has seen a 30% increase in lifespan, and increase in muscle tissue and cognitive function.Source

2. Read often and read widely.

Keeping an active interest in the world around you will help to exercise your brain and improve your mental fitness. I’m not talking about the negative stories all over the news and the internet. Dive into something more meaningful! If you love business, a great book that my team and I just read is called Traction by Gino Wickman, which was great. Maybe you love spirit-science or maybe you are into personal development books. Find something you are genuinely interested in and get your learn on!

5. Take time to relax.

Excess stress hormones like cortisol can be harmful to the brain. Schedule regular periods of relaxation each week, such as meditation, prayers, yoga, or whatever makes you feel rested and at peace in your mind, body and spirit.

7. Actively manage your health.

Conditions such as diabetes or heart disease can affect mental performance if not diagnosed and treated. Be sure to have regular check-ups with your doctor to prevent these issues. If something feels “off,” be sure to share this information in your appointment. And whatever you do, don’t be afraid to get a second, third, fourth opinion either! This is YOUR health and it matters – so do you.

8. Engage in stimulating conversations.

Talk to friends and family about a wide range of topics. This gives your brain an opportunity to explore, examine and enquire. It also allows you to connect on a deeper level with those around you. At Fitlife, we like to call this “soul food.”

9. Exercise your brain with others.

Watch, question and answer game shows and enjoy the competitive spirit. Involve the family in regular games to test their general knowledge and yours! No matter your age or experience, there is always something new to learn.

10. Gratitude.

Taking 5-10 minutes first thing in the morning to write down 3 things you are grateful for is a really easy way to radically improve your life! Using your thoughts to intentionally change your emotions is often referred to as positive psychology and can have a profound affect on your mental, physical and spiritual state. There is so much we take for granted, especially the simple things we use every day. Thank your body for all that it does for you – your eyes to see; your skin to protect you; your ears to listen; your mouth to speak and nourish your cells. When you take the time to dig in, your heart can’t help but overflow and be reminded of how truly blessed we are to be alive!

12. Intermittent fasting.

This study shows that short-term fasting induces neuronal autophagy. Autophagy, or “self-eating,” is the process by which cells recycle waste material, downregulate wasteful processes and repair themselves. Brain health is highly dependent on neuronal autophagy. It also increases levels of BDNF (Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor). Low levels of BDFN are linked to Alzheimer’s. Of course, this is not for everyone. Particularly, if you are a female dealing with any kind of hormonal imbalance, be sure to check with your healthcare professional before trying this for yourself.